


Mesmerising

by startrekkingaroundasgard



Series: Pride Month Prompts 2019 [7]
Category: Captain Marvel (2019), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Neighbors, F/F, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-14
Updated: 2019-06-14
Packaged: 2020-05-07 15:15:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19212073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/startrekkingaroundasgard/pseuds/startrekkingaroundasgard
Summary: Modern day AU. Carol has an enormous crush on her neighbour and finally does something about it.





	Mesmerising

When Carol heard that Nick was moving out of the apartment across the hall, she’d been sad to see him go. He’d been a bit odd, very secretive and clearly involved in all kinds of shady things, but that had made him the perfect neighbour. He never had guests round and was always quiet - except for the odd occasion when she heard him singing whilst doing the dishes. It was a shame to see him go. However, her reservations about getting a new neighbour faded the moment she laid eyes on the woman who was moving in instead.

Buried beneath a tower of boxes, sweaty and droopy eyed, exhausted from the arduous task of moving house, you were still the single most gorgeous person that Carol had ever seen. She couldn’t describe what it was that drew her to you. All she knew was that you were special and she had to get to know you.

So she waited completely conspicuously, resting against the doorframe of her apartment, for you to return with your next load in the hope of catching your eye and introducing herself. Less than five minutes later, you reappeared up the stairs carrying an even bigger pile of boxes before.

Your arms shook from the weight and it was obvious how this was going to end even before the tower began to lean further than Piza.

All but leaping from her doorway, Carol ran across the hallway to catch the falling boxes. In her enthusiasm, she bumped into the wall and left quite the dent in your door. Running a hand through her hair, she set the boxes down and grimaced at the damage. “I’m so sorry. I was just trying to help.”

“You did. You saved the wine glasses from certain doom. And now the door has a certain charm to it, wouldn’t you say? Anyway, thank you. I’m Y/N.”

“Carol.”

“My hero. I’m so glad we’ve met.”

Smiling so hard that her cheeks hurt, Carol helped you carry the boxes into your flat and then spent the afternoon assisting you move the rest of your belongings into your new home. You insisted that you could do it alone but that argument fell on deaf ears. Making sure to take the heaviest of the boxes, Carol said, “Just because you can do it alone doesn’t mean you have to.”

By the time you’d finished emptying the moving truck, night had fallen and you were both exhausted. Obviously you hadn’t had time to unpack any of your kitchen equipment so Carol invited you round for dinner. She saw you hesitate and immediately reassured you, “It’s okay if you don’t want to. I didn’t mean to come across as intense but when I see someone in distress I can’t help but try to help them.”

“You’re a knight in shining armour too? Is there anything you can’t do?”

“I can’t cook to save my life, honestly. I incinerate pretty much everything I touch. So if you do decide to join me for dinner, it will just be take out from the pizza place round the corner.”

“Pizza sounds good,” you said, catching Carol by surprise. “I’m gonna take a quick shower but knock when food is here? We’re paying half, by the way.”

She really hadn’t been expecting you to accept the offer but the fact you had sent her heart soaring. It wasn’t a date, she reminded herself, but Carol was still just as excited. You’d spent the whole afternoon talking as you traipsed up and down the stairs, slowly revealing small tidbits about your life and listening enraptured as she had told you about hers. And now she had another chance to learn more about you and it filled her with excitement.

Holding back her enthusiasm so not to scare you away - although your eyes were shining with a glee that suggested nothing she could do would frighten you away now - Carol winked and said, “Can’t wait.”

***

After that first night, you and Carol became friends. She took you to all her favourite places in town, introduced you to some of her colleagues and friends so that you wouldn’t feel so alone in this new place and made sure you knew all the proper places to avoid. Of course, taking the time out of her schedule to show you around was no skin off her back. The longer that Carol spent in your company the more she knew that she had to have you in her life.

You were kind and funny, able to make her laugh even on the bad days. Your generosity knew no bounds and there was no one that you wouldn’t go out of your way to help. So frequently you called Carol a hero - a nickname that had stuck over your first meeting - but if anyone was a superhero then it was without doubt you.

Your heart was full of so much love. It surrounded you like a physical light, shining in the darkness. Anyone without hope could look upon you and know that good things were on the horizon. Your love for people was only surpassed by your love for life itself. You savoured every moment, every smile and every tear as if they were gifts from the universe itself. Being around you had given Carol a new appreciation for the small things and your friendship meant the world to her.

As the months passed, though, and you began to grow settled in your life here, you had less free time to spend together. Between work and socialising, Carol only really got to spend time with you at the weekend. She never complained because your company was amazing but during the week she missed you. She couldn’t help it.

It seemed that you occupied her thoughts more than anyone else and in the lonely evenings her chest ached when she couldn’t see you. In the silence of her apartment she swore she could hear you singing. See you dancing. Smell your perfume. It was ridiculous, she knew, but Carol just couldn’t get your smile out of her mind. Just thinking about it gave her warm feelings.

One day, Carol couldn’t help herself. She missed you. So, she grabbed a mug from the side (taking a moment to give it a quick wash; she didn’t want you to think she was a heathen) and then hopped over the hallway to your apartment. She didn’t even know if you would be in but then you opened the door, smiling that amazing smile that always made her heart skip a beat.

“I’m out of coffee and was wondering if you had any spare,” Carol said, wiggling the still damp mug in front of her. “I’ve got a big presentation to prepare for and need the energy.”

“Of course! Come on in and we’ll find you some.” You waved her into your flat and walked her to the kitchen, gesturing to some of the cupboards. “I can’t remember where I left it, though. Try in that one and I’ll look over here. First one to find it gets the corner slice of the brownies.”

Carol’s eyes lit up. “You made brownies?”

“Mmmhmm. Extra chocolate chips, too, just the way you like.”

Bordering on the pathetic, Carol spent the next few weeks coming up with increasingly insane reasons to visit you during the day. A sane person would have suggested that on the days you both worked from home that you enjoy your lunches together but Carol wasn’t quite sure that your friendship had quite reached the level where she could presume to interrupt your free time. So, like a teenager with a crush, she knocked on your door every couple of days to ask for something new in the hope of spending a few hours with you.

Whether you had what she was looking for or not, you always invited her inside for coffee and cake and never seemed angry for the distraction from work. Sometimes, as she went to leave, your face would drop, your smile would lose a little bit of its shine, and Carol convinced herself that you were sad to see her go.

Following every afternoon you spent together, Carol would call her best friend Maria for advice. The conversation was always the same. Carol talked about you for 20 minutes without taking a breath. Maria rolled her eyes in the way which was actually audible down the phone. After a short debate on the pros and cons of asking you out, it was decided that she would wait just another few days before taking the leap.

Today’s conversation started no differently; Carol sung your praises, blabbering on about your new project at work and the delicious cookies you’d made. But before Maria could roll her eyes, Carol threw a spanner in the proceedings and announced, “I think I’m going to ask her out.”

“Finally!” Maria said, her relief tangible. “Even Monica was beginning to worry that you’d never get around to it.”

“You are both awful people.”

“We love you really and I’m so happy for you. I know for a fact that Y/N will say yes and you’ll have a great time.”

“I hope so.”

***

“For once, can I talk first? Please? I came here to complain about my day not hear how awesomely your date went with her. Wait…” Maria saw Carol flinch, the minuscule expression that would have been imperceptible to almost anyone else shining loud and clear like a warning bell. “You did ask her out, didn’t you?”

“Sure. I invited her out to karaoke and we had a great time. Just like you said.”

“She knew it was a date, right?”

“I guess? I think…”

Maria’s head fell to the side and she was sure that her mouth was so far open that her jaw was about to hit the floor. She was sure she had never heard anything so stupid in her life and her daughter had the wildest imagination going; just last week she’d claimed that their cat was alien from space. Setting down her mug, she leant forward and said, “You’re hopeless. You know that, right?”

“I’m definitely not. I think she just wants to be friends.”

Shaking her head, Maria grabbed a cookie from the table and waved in the air as she imparted her (unrequested as ever) wisdom. “She is head over heels for you, Carol! And if you don’t get off your ass and do something about it then she’s gonna lose faith and find someone else. Because she will. You can’t expect the poor girl to wait around forever.”

Carol groaned and sunk into the sofa. She threw her arm over her face and hid behind it, Maria’s knowing expression a little unnerving really. “What do you expect me to do, Rambeau?”

“I expect you to go across the hall and kiss Y/N senseless. I guarantee that she’ll kiss you back and then everyone will be happy. When you finally resurface from your week of marathon sex you won’t be pining and might finally listen to my problems.”

“I’m sorry, Maria.”

“I’m joking but I am being serious about Y/N. I get it. You love her and I know it’s scary but you are Carol Danvers! The one and only and I know that my best friend doesn’t let fear stop her from doing anything. Hey, where are you going?”

“To go kiss the woman I love,” Carol said resoundingly, pushing herself up from the sofa and practically charging out the door.

Maria stood up to protest but decided against it. For one, she didn’t need to see Carol sucking your face off. For another, she feared that interfering in any way would disrupt her friend’s determination and she really didn’t want to watch her pining another minute longer. So, instead, she grabbed the plate of cookies from the table, opened Carol’s Netflix and made herself comfortable on the sofa for a peaceful evening alone.

Outside in the hallway, Carol was surprisingly calm as she knocked on your door. Maria was right. It was time to make a move before she lost you forever.

You opened the door dressed only in a towel, water still dripping from your hairline. Carol couldn’t help but track the trails down your cheek, neck, collarbone, before disappearing behind the towel. Her gaze lingered on your chest, her mouth suddenly feeling a little dry, before she snapped her attention back to your face.

“You alright there, Carol?” you asked, lips turned up in a smirk.

Carol couldn’t tear her gaze away from your smile. It was mesmerising. You were mesmerising. She couldn’t remember all the times she’d imagined kissing you, feeling your soft mouth on her skin, hearing your soft moans fall from your lips. All she knew was she had to kiss you now before it was too late.

Able to wait no longer, Carol stepped forward and cupped your face in her hands, guiding you towards her lips. She kissed you softly, gentle but without fear. Commanding but never rough. Her brashness caught you by surprise but you immediately melted into the kiss, wrapping your arms around her neck and pulling her flush against your body.

Stumbling backwards, you tugged her into your apartment and moaned as your back hit the door. Carol’s hands slid down your body before coming to rest on your hips. Your laced your fingers through her hair, deepening the kiss until there was nothing else in world save for the feel of her hands on your body and your tongue dancing with hers.

When you finally broke apart, Carol’s heart was pounding in her chest. She couldn’t believe how lucky she was. You were everything she’d ever imagined and more, the most beautiful, amazing woman in the entire universe.

“I’ve wanted you to do that for a long time,” you admitted, brushing a stray strand of blonde hair from her face. Carol’s insides were a mess as you tucked it behind her ear, even that briefest touch enough to make her feel like a giddy schoolgirl. “I was beginning to think you never would.”

Carol’s cheeks turned a light pink in embarrassment. “Sorry.”

“Oh, don’t apologise,” you said, leaning forward for another slow kiss. “This was absolutely worth the wait.”


End file.
